Athletics -- 08/28/03

::FIC Local Spin::

Pitching, pitching, and more pitching has been the A's philosophy in recent years. However, one of the A's vaunted arms -- Mark Mulder -- is down and out for the rest of the season and most likely postseason. He's bored out of his mind, hobbling around on crutches. When word got out that he was out, the A's were in Toronto playing the Blue Jays in a four-game series. Although the A's dropped the first game of that series 6-3, the next night they came back with a vengence, scoring 11 runs. The next day they put up a season high 17 runs, including 2 grand slams in the same game -- something the A's had never done before in their 103 year history. They scored a total of 36 runs that series -- an average of 9 runs a game. This is a crucial time for the A's and hopefully the offense can continue to roll. Eric Chavez and Miguel Tejada have been lighting up the league by batting well over .300 since the All-Star break, and will be needed to help the A's to their fourth straight postseason berth.

The A's starting rotation has taken a hit -- and the offense and the bullpen have stepped up magnificently. On a trip to Boston and Toronto, the A's went 5-2, only their second winning roadtrip of the year! In Boston, the A's starters lasted a total of NINE innings. No starter went deeper than 6.1 innings. However, the bullpen combined for 11 scoreless inning in the first two games of the Boston series, which the A's won in thrilling come-back fashion.

::Latest Team Info::

Finally, for the first time in more than four months, you can call them the first-place (sole possession) Oakland Athletics. Seattle's loss to Tampa Bay and Oakland's win over Baltimore combined to drop Seattle a game behind Oakland.

Tim Hudson pitched six strong outings for the A's in his first start after being hit in the right (pitching) hand by a Dave Berg (Jays) line drive. He gave up 2 runs, both unearned (on his own throwing error). This occured in the A's 17-2 blowout win over the Jays, thus he did not pitch deeper than 6 innings although he certainly could of. His pitch count was relatively low. However, he had been knocked in the right leg in the third inning of the game by a ball hit back up the middle, so the A's wanted to be extra careful.

::Rumor Mill::

The A's are still thinking of obtaining a starter to take Mulder's spot in the rotation although John Halama is currently pitching in his spot. Possibilities include Livan Hernandez and Pat Hentgen.

::Injuries::

As most people know, Mark Mulder has been diagnosed with a stress fracture in his hip. This will heal in approximately 5 weeks, which is the end of the season. He would then have to begin rehab. Almost certainly he will not be back until the start of the 2004 season.

::On the Farm::

The PCL named Rivercats' (AAA) right-handed pitcher Justin Duchscherer its “Pitcher of the Year” for the 2003 season. Justin Duchscherer, 25, is 13-2 with a 3.28 ERA in 23 games (22 starts) with Sacramento this season. He set a new River Cats record for wins in a season and represented Sacramento in the Triple-A All-Star Game earlier this year. Duchscherer leads the league in wins (13) and has the PCL’s sixth-best ERA (3.28). He has won his last 10 decisions. Earlier this week, has was named the right-handed starting pitcher for the 2003 All-PCL Team.

The PCL named Rivercats shortstop Bobby Crosby its “Rookie of the Year” for the 2003 season. Crosby, 23, is batting .303 (136-for-449) with 20 HR and 84 RBI in 122 games with Sacramento this season. This week, he became just the fifth player in club history to hit 20 HR and record 20 SB in the same season. Crosby ranks second in the league with 57 extra-base hits and is among the PCL’s top five in slugging percentage (.532) and runs scored (83).

The PCL named Rivercats first baseman/designated hitter Graham Koonce its "Most Valuable Player" for the 2003 season. Koonce, 28, is batting .276 (129-for-468) with 31 HR and 109 RBI in 134 games (all but 5) with Sacramento this season. He also ranks among the PCL’s top five in on-base percentage (.402), and slugging percentage (.528).

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Ramon Hernandez -- has been hitting .400 (10-for-25) in the last 7 days with a modest 6 game hit streak, and some pop.

Mark Ellis -- hitting .308 (8-for-26) in the last 7 days with a homer and 4 RBI.

Ted Lilly -- has been putting together a few pretty good starts, aside from the shelling in Boston

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Mark Mulder

Posted by Angela L. at 02:51 PM | Comments (2)

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